Simplification of Data for Representing an Environment, Based on the Heights and Elevations of Polyhedrons that Define Structures Represented in the Data

ABSTRACT

A technique for simplifying structure data for representing an environment. Polyhedrons can make up structure data used in an application such as modeling, visualization, and navigation. Consequently, the operations that are performed on the data often involve determining, for each polyhedron that defines a structure such as a building, whether the polyhedron obstructs a line-of-sight line between a first point in space being considered in the application and a second point. In order to determine whether a polyhedron obstructs a line-of-sight line, a data-processing system operating on the structure data must determine whether any walls of the polyhedron intersect the line. Thus, the more polyhedrons there are or the more vertices that are in each polyhedron, the more walls there are, and the more intersection checks are required, thereby adding to the computations. The disclosed technique reduces the number of walls by simplifying objects that make up the structure data.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is related to “Simplification of data for representingan environment, via the expansion of polyhedrons that define structuresrepresented in the data,” U.S. application Ser. No. ______ , AttorneyDocket 465-392us1, and “Simplification of data for representing anenvironment, via the reduction of vertices that define structuresrepresented in the data,” U.S. application Ser. No. ______ , AttorneyDocket 465-398us1, both filed on the same day as the present applicationand incorporated by reference herein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to representation of an environment ingeneral, and, more particularly, to the simplification of data forrepresenting an environment, based on the heights and elevations ofpolyhedrons that define structures that are represented in the data.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Various applications use data that represent a particular environment.One example of such an application involves the modeling ofelectromagnetic wave propagation throughout an environment that includesbuildings and possibly other types of structures. Wave propagationmodeling can be performed for various reasons, including a need tounderstand existing telecommunications system coverage and a need topredict potential coverage configurations.

The structure data that is used in such modeling, as well as in otherapplications, is often specified in terms of polyhedrons, in which oneor more polyhedrons make up each building or other type of structure.Each polyhedron, in turn, can be defined by both an ordered set ofvertices and a height. Each vertex in the ordered set can be representedusing coordinates, and the set itself defines a polygon footprint of thepolyhedron being defined. Some of these types of polyhedrons arereferred to as “prisms” that have a polygon footprint and verticalwalls.

Structure data, including that of buildings, is typically created fromsatellite imagery or other imagery captured from a reconnaissance pointthat scans the various structures in the environment. Because thelimitations of the source of the structure data are well understood andquantifiable, the data itself can be characterized as being at aparticular resolution of detail. Similarly, the data can be alsocharacterized in terms of horizontal and/or vertical accuracies, in thateach point (e.g., vertex, etc.) specified can deviate from its trueposition according to a specified accuracy.

The operations that are performed, by at least some applications, ondata that represent an environment can include checking for visibilityof a first point in space from a second point and checking for theobstruction of the first point in relation to the second point, to namea few operations. The operations that are performed on the data areoften computationally intensive, however, and can require large amountsof computer-processing resources, such as instruction cycles, memory,and input-output operations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

When one or more polyhedrons make up structure data used forrepresenting an environment, the operations that are performed on thedata often involve determining, for each polyhedron that defines astructure such as a building, whether the polyhedron obstructs aline-of-sight line between a first point in space being considered in anapplication and a second point. In order to determine whether apolyhedron obstructs a line-of-sight line, a data-processing systemoperating on the structure data must determine whether any walls of thepolyhedron intersect the line. Thus, the more vertices that are in thepolyhedron, the more walls there are, and the more intersection checksare required, thereby adding to the computations that are required ofthe data-processing system.

Similarly, the more polyhedrons there are for defining each structure orstructures, the more walls there are, and the more intersection checksare required, thereby adding to the computations that are required ofthe data-processing system. Furthermore, each structure can be definedwith multiple polyhedrons of different heights, in terms of theirmeasurements from base to top. Consequently, a line between the twopoints might pass through many walls, where the number of walls variesby elevation in terms of height above a given level (e.g., mean sealevel, etc.), even though the outer walls of each structure beingrepresented are often the only walls that must be considered during theuse of the structure data.

Thus, it is important to manage the walls that are represented in adataset that contains structure data for representing an environment(i.e., “environment data”), at least from a computational perspective.

The present invention enables an improvement in the functioning of adata-processing system that uses environment data, in applications suchas but not limited to modeling, visualization, and navigation, andwithout at least some of the disadvantages in the prior art. Inparticular, embodiments of the present invention account for thedifferent heights and elevations of polyhedrons in the structure data.At a given level of elevation, embodiments of the present invention forma consolidated polygon footprint to define a consolidated polyhedron,from two or more constituent polygon footprints defining constituentpolyhedrons in the structure data. The embodiments of the presentinvention repeat this process at subsequent levels of elevation. Indoing so, the number of polyhedrons that need to be considered whileusing the environment data is reduced. As a result, fewer computationsare required by applications that use the simplified environment data,and, by association, fewer resources are utilized by a computerexecuting such applications. Furthermore, such an improvement in thefunctioning of the computer, or other data-processing system, isachieved without sacrificing the quality of the subsequent applicationof the environment data. As an added benefit, the simplificationtechniques disclosed herein can be performed offline and, depending onhow the environment data is to be used, need be performed only once.

The inventors had an insight, which when applied to a use of theenvironment data achieves the aforementioned improvement without asacrifice in quality, as explained here. It is already known that in thefield of modeling electromagnetic waves propagating through a regionoccupied by buildings, the techniques of modeling the particularenvironment utilize building data having a known error. For example,such building data can be based upon satellite data, which is specifiedas being accurate to within a particular resolution of detail (e.g., 2meters, 5 meters, 20 meters, 30 meters, etc.). In accordance with theillustrative embodiment of the present invention, and based on theinventors' insight, the techniques disclosed herein account for theresolution of the building data. In particular, for each level ofelevation being processed, a polyhedron at that level can be eitherretained or removed based on its height in relation to the resolution ofthe building data. For example, the coarser the data resolution, thetaller the polyhedron that can be removed. Then, the retainedpolyhedrons at that level of elevation are combined, therebyconsolidating the number of polyhedrons.

In forming new polyhedrons from individual polyhedrons in this way, thedisclosed techniques are able to achieve a reduction in the number ofpolyhedrons that must be processed, thereby improving the functioning ofthe computer. And, as the inventors realized, by limiting the maximumheight of a polyhedron that can be removed based on the resolution ofthe data, the disclosed technique accomplishes the reduction in thenumber of polyhedrons without increasing the error of the representationof an environment beyond that which was already present in the buildingdata, thereby maintaining the quality of the particular use of thebuilding data. Furthermore, the improvement that is achieved applies notonly to an improvement in the dataset itself, but also applies to thetechnology that is used in support of various applications such as,while not being limited to, i) electromagnetic wave propagationmodeling, ii) gaming, and iii) navigation (e.g., of drones, ofself-drive vehicles, of vehicles in general, of other things used fortransportation, etc.).

In some embodiments of the present invention, the technique for reducingthe number of polyhedrons based on elevation and height that isdisclosed herein can be used in conjunction with reducing the number ofvertices that are required to represent one or more structures in thedataset, thereby reducing further the total number of walls, the numberof intersection checks that need to be performed, and the computationsthat are required of the data-processing system. The technique forreducing the number of polyhedrons can also consider how the polyhedronsoverlap horizontally.

A first method for simplifying the representation of structures in datafor representing an environment comprises: receiving, by adata-processing system, a first dataset that is representative of one ormore structures defined by a plurality of polyhedrons, including acontrol polyhedron having a control footprint, wherein each polyhedronin the plurality has a polygon footprint and one or more neighborpolyhedrons; determining, by the data-processing system, that a firstpolyhedron, in a first non-empty set of polyhedrons whose polygonfootprints overlap the control footprint, also overlaps in height withthe control polyhedron; determining, by the data-processing system, thata second polyhedron defined as a neighbor polyhedron of the firstpolyhedron, with a polygon footprint that overlaps the footprint of thefirst polyhedron, also overlaps in height with the control polyhedron,resulting in a second non-empty set of polyhedrons that overlap inheight with the control polyhedron, including the first polyhedron andthe second polyhedron; dividing, by the data-processing system, eachpolyhedron in the second set of polyhedrons into a base part and a toppart, resulting in a third set of polyhedrons; joining, by thedata-processing system, at least a portion of the control polyhedronwith all of the base parts of the polyhedrons in the third set ofpolyhedrons, resulting in a first joined polyhedron; and transmitting,by the data-processing system to an application engine, a second datasetthat comprises i) the first joined polyhedron and ii) a polyhedrondefined by a top part of at least one of the polyhedrons in the thirdset of polyhedrons.

A second method for simplifying the representation of structures in datafor representing an environment comprises: receiving, by adata-processing system, a first dataset that is representative of one ormore structures defined by a plurality of polyhedrons, including acontrol polyhedron having a control footprint, wherein each polyhedronin the plurality has a polygon footprint and one or more neighborpolyhedrons, and wherein the first dataset is characterized as having apredetermined error; determining, by the data-processing system, that afirst polyhedron, in a first non-empty set of polyhedrons whose polygonfootprints overlap the control footprint, also overlaps in height withthe control polyhedron; determining, by the data-processing system, thata second polyhedron also overlaps in height with the control polyhedron,resulting in a second non-empty set of polyhedrons that overlap inheight with the control polyhedron, including the first polyhedron andthe second polyhedron; dividing, by the data-processing system, eachpolyhedron in the second set of polyhedrons into a base part and a toppart, resulting in a third set of polyhedrons; joining, by thedata-processing system, at least a portion of the control polyhedronwith all of the base parts of the polyhedrons in the third set ofpolyhedrons, resulting in a first joined polyhedron; removing a top partfrom at least one of the polyhedrons in the third set of polyhedrons,based on the height of the top part failing to exceed a value that isbased on the predetermined error; and transmitting, by thedata-processing system to an application engine, a second dataset thatcomprises i) the first joined polyhedron and ii) a polyhedron defined bya top part of at least one of the polyhedrons in the third set ofpolyhedrons, but excludes iii) the removed top part.

A third method for simplifying the representation of structures in datafor representing an environment comprises: receiving, by adata-processing system, a first dataset that is representative of one ormore structures defined by a plurality of polyhedrons, including acontrol polyhedron having a control footprint, wherein each polyhedronin the plurality has a polygon footprint and one or more neighborpolyhedrons, wherein at least one point of the control polyhedron ischaracterized as having the lowest start elevation in the plurality ofpolyhedrons; determining, by the data-processing system, that a firstpolyhedron, in a first non-empty set of polyhedrons whose polygonfootprints overlap the control footprint, also overlaps in height withthe control polyhedron; determining, by the data-processing system, thata second polyhedron also overlaps in height with the control polyhedron,resulting in a second non-empty set of polyhedrons that overlap inheight with the control polyhedron, including the first polyhedron andthe second polyhedron; dividing, by the data-processing system, eachpolyhedron in the second set of polyhedrons into a base part and a toppart, such that each base part has the same end elevation as the controlpolyhedron, and wherein each top part has a start elevation that is thesame as the end elevation of the control polyhedron, the end elevationof a given polyhedron being higher than the start elevation of the givenpolyhedron, wherein the dividing results in a third set of polyhedrons;joining, by the data-processing system, at least a portion of thecontrol polyhedron with all of the base parts of the polyhedrons in thethird set of polyhedrons, resulting in a joined polyhedron; andtransmitting, by the data-processing system to an application engine, asecond dataset that comprises i) the joined polyhedron and ii) apolyhedron defined by a top part of at least one of the polyhedrons inthe third set of polyhedrons.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a diagram of the salient components of data creation andsimplification system 100, in accordance with the illustrativeembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 depicts a block diagram of the salient components of datasimplification system 103, within data creation and simplificationsystem 100.

FIG. 3 depicts a block diagram of the salient components ofdata-processing system 201, within data simplification system 103.

FIG. 4 depicts structure dataset 401, which comprises data in the formof polyhedrons.

FIG. 5 depicts the polyhedrons that make up structure dataset 401.

FIG. 6 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes of method 600,performed in accordance with the illustrative embodiment.

FIG. 7 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes of task 603 relatedto performing initialization, as part of method 600.

FIG. 8 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes of task 605 relatedto performing vertices reduction on the polygon footprint of eachinitialized polyhedron, as part of method 600.

FIG. 9 depicts a first illustrative footprint, belonging to polyhedron501-1.

FIG. 10 depicts a second illustrative footprint, belonging to polyhedron501-3.

FIG. 11 depicts the first illustrative footprint, in which theperforming of task 803 results in two large vertical walls beingidentified.

FIG. 12 depicts the second illustrative footprint, in which no largewalls are identified, so no vertices are marked as being non-removable.

FIG. 13 depicts the first illustrative footprint, in which theperforming of task 805 reduces the number of vertices.

FIG. 14 depicts the second illustrative footprint, in which theperforming of task 805 reduces the number of vertices.

FIG. 15 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes of task 607 relatedto performing polygon expansion and overlap checking on the polygonfootprints of each vertices-reduced polyhedron.

FIG. 16 depicts first illustrative footprint 1601, associated withpolyhedron 501-1, and expanded footprint 1602.

FIG. 17 depicts second illustrative footprint 1701, associated withpolyhedron 501-3, and expanded to footprint 1702.

FIG. 18 depicts dataset 1801, created as the result of task 1501 beingperformed on all of the polyhedrons within the previous dataset.

FIG. 19 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes of task 609 relatedto performing polyhedron joining on the expanded polyhedrons.

FIG. 20 depicts a different view of dataset 1801, in which polyhedron2001 has been selected as the initial control polyhedron.

FIG. 21 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes of task 1903related to performing processing for the current control polyhedron.

FIG. 22 depicts polyhedrons that were previously determined to beoverlapping are now stacked on top of a single polyhedron that has beenformed in part from the control polyhedron.

FIG. 23 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes related toperforming modeling on a simplified dataset that comprises one or morejoined polyhedrons.

FIG. 24 depicts simplified dataset 2401.

FIG. 25 depicts geographic region 2501, in which the structures that arepresent can be represented in a simplified dataset, in accordance withthe illustrative embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Based on—For the purposes of this specification, the phrase “based on”is defined as “being dependent on” in contrast to “being independentof”. The value of Y is dependent on the value of X when the value of Yis different for two or more values of X. The value of Y is independentof the value of X when the value of Y is the same for all values of X.Being “based on” includes both functions and relations.

Dataset—For the purposes of this specification, the phrase “dataset” isdefined as a collection of data, A dataset can originate from anorganized collection of data, such as a database.

Edge—For the purposes of this specification, the phrase “edge” isdefined as a line segment joining two vertices in a polygon orpolyhedron.

Elevation—For the purposes of this specification, the phrase “elevation”is defined as height above a given level (e.g., ground, MSL, etc.). A“start elevation” is defined as the height of the lowest point on apolyhedron, while an “end elevation” is defined as the height of thehighest point on a polyhedron. In some alternative embodiments of thepresent invention, the “start elevation” is defined as the height of thehighest point on a polyhedron, while the “end elevation” is defined asthe height of the lowest point on a polyhedron.

Environment—For the purposes of this specification, the phrase“environment” is defined as the aggregate of surrounding things,conditions, and/or influences.

Footprint—For the purposes of this specification, the phrase “footprint”is defined as the area on a surface covered by something, such as by apolyhedron that is representative of a structure in a dataset.

Height—For the purposes of this specification, the phrase “height” isdefined as measurement from base to top. The height of an object, suchas a polyhedron, is defined as measurement from the base of the objectto the top of the object.

Overlap—to have an area or range in common with.

Polygon—For the purposes of this specification, the phrase “polygon” isdefined as a closed plane figure having at least three sides (edges). Insome embodiments of the present invention, the sides are straight.

Polyhedron—For the purposes of this specification, the phrase“polyhedron” is defined as a solid in three dimensions with flatpolygonal faces, straight edges and sharp corners or vertices. A“neighbor polyhedron” is defined as a polyhedron that is within apredetermined distance from another polyhedron.

Structure—For the purposes of this specification, the phrase “structure”is defined as something built or constructed, such as a building,bridge, dam, or machine, for example and without limitation. For thepurposes of this specification, the phrase “building” is defined as astructure with a roof and walls, such as a dwelling, house, school,store, or factory, for example and without limitation.

Vertex—For the purposes of this specification, the phrase “vertex” isdefined as a point where two or more curves, lines, or edges meet,

Wall—For the purposes of this specification, the phrase “wall” isdefined as a side of a building or room.

FIG. 1 depicts a diagram of the salient components of data creation andsimplification system 100, in accordance with the illustrativeembodiment of the present invention. Data creation and simplificationsystem 100 comprises: mapping system 101, structure database 102, datasimplification system 103, and application engine 104 which areinterrelated as shown.

For illustrative purposes, system 100 includes the simplification ofdata representing one or more buildings within an environment and alsoprocessing of the simplified environment data in support ofelectromagnetic wave propagation modeling. As those who are skilled inthe art will appreciate, however, after reading this specification, thedata can represent structures that are different from buildings, or canrepresent other objects that are representable with polyhedrons.Furthermore, the use of the simplified data can for a purpose that isdifferent than propagation modeling. For example and without limitation,embodiments of the present invention can be applied to visualization(e.g., used in gaming programs, etc.), other types of modeling,simulation, prediction, navigation, computer-aided design (e.g., forurban planning, etc.), and so on.

The type of polyhedron that is handled by system 100 in the illustrativeembodiment is a “right prism.” A right prism is a geometric solid thathas a polygon as its base and vertical sides perpendicular to the base.As those who are skilled in the art will appreciate after reading thisspecification, however, at least some other types of polyhedrons thatare different from right prisms can be handled by at least some of thetechniques disclosed herein; such polyhedrons include oblique prisms andnon-prismatic polyhedrons, for example and without limitation.Furthermore, as those who are skilled in the art will appreciate afterreading this specification, at least some other types of solids in threedimensions that are different than polyhedrons can be handled by atleast some of the techniques disclosed herein; such geometric solidsinclude cylinders, cones, spheres, and tori, for example and withoutlimitation. As a non-limiting example, the circular base of a cylinder,cone, hemisphere, or hemi-torus can be used instead of the polygonalbase of a polyhedron (i.e., a “circular footprint” instead of a “polygonfootprint” as described below), in some alternative embodiments of thepresent invention.

Mapping system 101 is responsible for the creation of structure data, inwell-known fashion. System 101 features the capture of imagery ofbuildings and/or other terrestrial structures and details. System 101comprises hardware and software that provides imagery over a giventerrestrial surface area. The imaging devices include imaging satellitesand unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) such as macro UAVs and micro drones,for example and without limitation.

Structure database 102 is responsible for receiving and maintaining oneor more datasets of structure data, in well-known fashion. Database 102features the organizing and storage of imagery of buildings and/or otherterrestrial structures and details, in the form of polyhedrons. Database102 comprises hardware and software that provides datasets of buildingsand other structures. For example and without limitation, Database 102can include at least a portion of a geographical information system(GIS) database as is known in the art. The type of data that can beprovided to data simplification system 103 can comprise terrain data andbuilding data.

Data simplification system 103 is responsible for the simplification ofstructures represented in a dataset, in accordance with the illustrativeembodiment. System 103 comprises hardware and software that uses thestructure data acquired from structure database 102, as described belowand in the accompanying figures. System 103 is described below and withrespect to FIG. 2.

In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, data simplificationsystem 103 communicates with structure database 102 and applicationengine 104 via a local area network. It will, however, be clear to thoseskilled in the art, after reading this disclosure, how to make and usealternative embodiments of the present invention in which datasimplification system 103 communicates with one or more of the entitiesdepicted in FIG. 1 via a different network. The network can be, forexample, the Internet, the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), awide area network, and so on.

Application engine 104 is responsible for the modeling, or for adifferent type of processing, that uses the simplified environment datareceived from system 103, and the presentation of the modeling results,in accordance with the illustrative embodiment. As depicted, engine 104executes on a data-processing system that comprises hardware andsoftware. In some alternative embodiments, application engine 104 can berealized in the form of software and/or hardware within datasimplification system 103 itself (e.g., within data-processing system201 described below, etc.).

FIG. 2 depicts a block diagram of the salient components of datasimplification system 103, in accordance with the illustrativeembodiment. Data simplification system 103 comprises: data-processingsystem 201, video display 210, speaker 211, keyboard 212, and pointingdevice 213, interconnected as shown.

Data-processing system 201 is a general-purpose computer that comprisesa processor, memory, and input and output interfaces for a userinterface. Data-processing system 201 is capable of performing the tasksdescribed below. Data-processing system 201:

-   -   i. receives one or more datasets from structure database 102,        and    -   iii. receives a keyboard signal from keyboard 212, comprising a        user input control, and    -   iii. receives a pointing and command signal from pointing device        213, comprising a user input control, and    -   iv. outputs a video signal to video display 210 to present        displayable objects, such as those representing simplified data        including structures, and    -   v. outputs a speaker signal to speaker 211.        Data-processing system 201 is further depicted in FIG. 3.

Video display 210 is a display device (e.g., a monitor, etc.) as is wellknown in the art that receives a video signal and creates a visual imageof the signal for presentation to a user. In accordance with theillustrative embodiment, display 210 receives the signals that aregenerated as described below and presents visual images of thesimplified data and, in some embodiments of the present invention,modeling results based on the simplified data. It will be clear to thoseskilled in the art, after reading this specification, how to make anduse video display 210.

Speaker 211 is an electro-acoustic transducer as is well known in theart that receives a speaker signal and creates an audible sound of thesignal for a user. It will be clear to those skilled in the art, afterreading this specification, how to make and use speaker 211.

Keyboard 212 is a character input device as is well known in the artthat receives input from a user and transmits keyboard signalsrepresenting that input. It will be clear to those skilled in the art,after reading this specification, how to make and use keyboard 212.

Pointing device 213 is a spatial input device (e.g., a mouse, ajoystick, a touchpad, a stylus, etc.) as is well known in the art thatreceives spatial and command (e.g., button, wheel, etc.) input from auser and that transmits pointing and command signals representing thatinput. It will be clear to those skilled in the art, after reading thisspecification, how to make and use pointing device 213.

In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, data simplificationsystem 103 performs at least some of the tasks described below. As thosewho are skilled in the art will appreciate after reading thisspecification, however, a different system can perform some or all ofsaid tasks.

FIG. 3 depicts a block diagram of the salient components ofdata-processing system 201, in accordance with the illustrativeembodiment. Data-processing system 201 is a computing device andcomprises input interface 301, processor 302, memory 303, outputinterface 304, and network interface 305 interconnected as shown. Inaccordance with the illustrative embodiment, data-processing system 201is a personal computer.

Input interface 301 receives signals from keyboard 212 and pointingdevice 213, and forwards the information encoded in the signals toprocessor 302. It will be clear to those skilled in the art, afterreading this specification, how to make and use input interface 301.

Processor 302 is a general-purpose processor that is capable of:receiving information from input interface 301; reading data from andwriting data into memory 303; executing at least some of the tasksdescribed below; and transmitting information to output interface 304.In some alternative embodiments of the present invention, processor 302might be or might comprise a special-purpose processor, such as agraphics-processing unit (GPU). In either case, it will be clear tothose skilled in the art, after reading this specification, how to makeand use processor 302.

Memory 303 stores data and executable instructions, is a combination ofvolatile and non-volatile memory, and is non-transitory. It will beclear to those skilled in the art, after reading this specification, howto make and use memory 303.

Output interface 304 receives information from processor 302, andoutputs signals that encode this information to video display 210 andspeaker 211. In some embodiments, output interface 304 can be built intoa video card, which can be used to offload at least some of theprocessing from processor 302. It will be clear to those skilled in theart, after reading this specification, how to make and use outputinterface 304.

Network interface 305 receives one or more datasets from structuredatabase 102. In some alternative embodiments of the present invention,the datasets are made available to data-processing system 201 throughother means. It will be clear to those skilled in the art, after readingthis specification, how to make and use network interface 305.

As those who are skilled in the art will appreciate after reading thisspecification, the hardware platform performing at least some of thetasks performed by data-processing system 201 can be embodied as amulti-processor platform, as a sub-component of a larger computingplatform, as a virtual computing element, or in some other computingenvironment—all within the scope of the present invention. The stepsdescribed herein can be performed in a single processor, or distributedacross multiple processors. Furthermore, data-processing system 201 canbe a type of apparatus different than a personal computer, such as aserver computer, and can be referred to by a different name such as acomputer system, a computing device, or another type of hardwareplatform that comprises one or more processors, one or more memories,and one or more network interfaces, for example and without limitation.

FIG. 4 depicts structure dataset 401, which comprises data in the formof polyhedrons, which in this example represent a building. Therepresented building is that which is located at 388 Market Street inSan Francisco, Calif., United States of America. This particularbuilding is featured in this specification for pedagogical purposes, asit is a departure from a conventional, boxy building. As those who areskilled in the art will appreciate after reading this specification,however, structure data for any building or buildings can beaccommodated by the system disclosed herein.

Structure dataset 401 is made up of six polyhedrons, which can moreclearly be seen in FIG. 5: they are polyhedrons 501-1 through 501-6.Each polyhedron can be represented in the dataset, specified in the formof i) a series of vertices that define a polygon footprint of thepolyhedron (i.e., along the x-axis and y-axis) and ii) a height (i.e.,along the z-axis). Most of the polyhedrons are situated next to at leastone other polyhedron, such as polyhedrons 501-1 and 501-6 next to eachother, while polyhedron 501-2 is stacked on top of polyhedron 501-3.Polyhedrons 501-1 through 501-6 are specified using six polygonfootprints, or one for each polyhedron, with a total of 486 vertices.The 486 vertices are used to define the 486 vertical walls and six roofsthat make up the six polyhedrons.

As described above, each polyhedron is defined in part as having apolygon footprint. As those who are skilled in the art will appreciateafter reading this specification, however, footprints of at least someother types of plane figures (e.g., circles, etc.) that correspond toleast some other types of geometric solids different than polyhedronscan be handled by at least some of the techniques disclosed herein.Moreover, such footprints can be defined in dataset 401 by featuresother than vertices, as those who are skilled in the art will appreciateafter reading this specification; for example, a circle can be definedby its center point and radius.

In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, the two vertices in thelower corners of the wall and a height component define a vertical wallof a polyhedron. As those who are skilled in the art will appreciateafter reading this specification, however, the two vertices in the uppercorners can be used along with a height component.

FIG. 6 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes of method 600,performed in accordance with the illustrative embodiment and comprisingoperations that are depicted in a particular order. It will be clear tothose having ordinary skill in the art, after reading the presentdisclosure, how to make and use alternative embodiments of method 600,as well as the other methods disclosed in this specification, whereinthe recited operations sub-operations, and messages are differentlysequenced, grouped, or sub-divided—all within the scope of the presentdisclosure. It will be further clear to those skilled in the art, afterreading the present disclosure, how to make and use alternativeembodiments of the disclosed methods wherein some of the describedoperations, sub-operations, and messages are optional, are omitted, orare performed by other elements and/or systems.

The structure simplification techniques disclosed in FIG. 6 and relatedfigures are depicted as being performed by data-processing system 201within data simplification system 103. As those who are skilled in theart will appreciate after reading this specification, however, thesedisclosed techniques can be performed elsewhere.

At task 601, data-processing system 201 receives raw (i.e.,non-simplified) structure data from structure database 102. Inparticular, system 201 receives dataset 401 that is representative of astructure or structures defined by one or more polyhedrons, each ofwhich having a footprint defined by a polygon (i.e., a “polygonfootprint”). Each polygon, in turn is made up of vertices and edges. Insome embodiments of the present invention, the dataset is characterizedas having a predetermined error. The predetermined error can becharacterized in terms of a particular resolution in the data (e.g., 1meter, 2 meters, 5 meters, 6 meters, 10 meters, 15 meters, 20 meters, 25meters, 30 meters, etc.), a particular accuracy in terms of how eachvertex point has been specified horizontally and/or vertically inrelation to its true position, or something else.

At task 603, data-processing system 201 performs an initialization basedon the data received at task 601. Task 603 is described below in regardto FIG. 7.

At task 605, data-processing system 201 performs vertices reduction onthe polygon footprint of each polyhedron in the initialized data. Theperforming of task 605 can result in the removal of one or more verticesfrom one or more polygon footprints. Task 605 is described below and inregard to FIG. 8.

At task 607, data-processing system 201 performs polyhedron expansionand overlap checking. Task 607 is described below and in regard to FIG.15.

At task 609, data-processing system 201 performs polyhedron joining,based on the polyhedrons that are found to be overlapping at task 607.Task 609 is described below and in regard to FIG. 19.

At task 611, data-processing system 201 transmits, to application engine104, the environment data that has been simplified in accordance withone or more of the aforementioned tasks. In some embodiments of thepresent invention, system 201 “transmits” the data by making itavailable to a software process used to implement the processingassociated with application engine 104. The processing associated withapplication engine 104 is described below and in regard to FIG. 23.

FIG. 7 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes of task 603 relatedto performing initialization, in accordance with the illustrativeembodiment. At task 701, data-processing system 201 removes polyhedronsthat are situated inside of other polyhedrons represented in structuredataset 401. In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, system 201removes polyhedrons that are completely inside other polyhedrons. Insome alternative embodiments of the present invention, system 201removes polyhedrons that are only partially inside; for example, apredetermined percentage a first polyhedron might be inside a secondpolyhedron, so the first polyhedron is removed, wherein the percentagemight be based on the predetermined error of the dataset, or on awavelength in a wave propagation being modeled, or on a differentcharacteristic.

System 201 can use a polygon clipping algorithm in order to firstdetermine whether the footprints overlap, and by how much, and then cancompare the heights of polyhedrons to determine overlap along the z-axis(i.e. vertically).

At task 703, system 201 determines which polyhedrons are neighbors toeach polyhedron in dataset 401 (i.e., within a predetermined distance),for all of the remaining polyhedrons. Some polyhedrons can have one ormore neighbor polyhedrons, while some polyhedrons might be isolated andnot have any neighbor polyhedrons. Neighbor polygons are processed inaccordance with tasks 705 and 1903, as described below.

System 201 can use a distance check, as is known in the art, todetermine the neighbor polyhedrons of a given polyhedron, for eachpolyhedron under consideration.

At task 705, system 201 determines which polyhedrons are stacked aboveand below each polyhedron. Knowing which polyhedrons are above or belowanother polyhedron can be used to determine which polyhedrons make up agiven building or other type of structure. This is important in order tohandle similar polyhedrons, or at least similarly situated polygons, ina coordinated manner, under certain conditions. System 201 can use apoint-in-polygon algorithm (e.g., inpolygon, etc.), as is known in theart, over each polyhedron's neighbors.

FIG. 8 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes of task 605 relatedto performing vertices reduction on the polygon footprint of eachinitialized polyhedron, in accordance with the illustrative embodiment.At task 801, data-processing system 201 removes each middle vertex ofeach set of three adjacent vertices, on the condition that the middlevertex does not protrude by more than a predetermined amount. FIG. 9depicts a first illustrative footprint, belonging to polyhedron 501-1,in which the performing of task 801 reduces the number of vertices from23 to 14. In the example, vertex 901 remains after task 801 isperformed, while vertex 902 can be removed. FIG. 10 depicts a secondexample, in which the number of vertices in a second illustrativefootprint is reduced from 107 to 35 in accordance with task 801. In theexample, vertex 1001 remains after task 801 is performed, while vertex1002 can be removed. This second example is of polyhedron 501-3.

For reducing the number of vertices, system 201 can use a minimum anglealgorithm for each set of three vertices, in order to determine how forthe middle vertex protrudes. In other words, the angle between i) theedge formed by an outer and the middle vertex, in a trio of vertices,and ii) an imaginary line running passing through the two outer verticesin the trio does not exceed a predetermined amount. As those who areskilled in the art will appreciate, after reading this specification,other equivalent methods can be used in determining whether a middlevertex protrudes by less than a predetermined amount in relation to itsadjacent vertices. These types of vertices can be removed because theoverall region around the removed vertices is still smooth enough foruse in the modeling to be performed.

At task 803, system 201 determines which vertices cannot be removed fromthe polygon footprint because they define a large vertical wall. Inaccordance with the illustrative embodiment, system 201 removes a vertexthat defines (along with a second vertex) an edge of a polygonfootprint, only if the edge does not exceed a predetermined firstlength; alternately, system 201 identifies a vertices as beingnon-removable if the edge does exceed the predetermined first length.

FIG. 11 depicts the first illustrative footprint, (i.e., belonging topolyhedron 501-1), in which the performing of task 803 results in twolarge vertical walls being identified and, as a result, whose definingvertices are marked as being non-removable. In the example, vertices1101 and 1102 are identified as defining edge 1103 (i.e., associatedwith a large wall) and, as such, are marked as being non-removable; incontrast, vertex 1104 (and at least some of the other vertices) can beremoved.

FIG. 12 depicts the second example, in which no large walls areidentified, so no vertices are marked as being non-removable. The onevertex that is “marked” in the figure, vertex 1201, is the startingvertex that is used when listing the vertices.

In some embodiments of the present invention, system 201 can select thepredetermined first length based on a first orientation of an edge thatis created by removing a reference vertex, in relation to a secondorientation of an edge that is defined in part by the reference vertex.The first orientation in relation to the second orientation can becharacterized as exhibiting a maximum rotation.

In some embodiments of the present invention, system 201 can identify avertex as non-removable because it co-defines a large vertical wall,based on one or more of:

-   -   i. the length of the edge defined by the vertex, as already        discussed,    -   ii. the wavelength (e.g., average, highest, lowest, etc.) of the        electromagnetic propagation to be modeled,    -   iii. the resolution (or other error characteristic such as        accuracy) of dataset 401,    -   iv. the amount of processing resources (e.g., processor speed,        memory, etc.) available to system 201, and    -   v. the height of the wall that is also defined by the vertex        being considered.

At task 805, system 201 determines which vertices can be removed basedon an edge not exceeding a predetermined second length, wherein thepredetermined second length is shorter than the predetermined firstlength used in accordance with task 803, and provided that the vertexunder consideration has not already been identified as beingnon-removable. In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, task 805is performed after task 803 so that, for example, a particular vertexthat co-defines a first edge that exceeds the predetermined first lengthis not removed if the vertex also co-defines a second edge that isshorter than the predetermined second length.

In order to perform task 805, in some embodiments of the presentinvention system 201 can select a first control vertex of the polygonfootprint being considered, and than assess each successive vertex ofthe polygon along a fixed direction, such that for each successivevertex being assessed, the system removes the vertex if it is within thepredetermined second length from the first control vertex, unless thevertex was already identified as being non-removable. Then, when avertex is encountered that is not removed, system 201 can make thatvertex the next control vertex, assess each successive vertex inrelation to that next control vertex, an so on, until system 201 arrivesat the end of the polygon footprint currently under consideration.

FIG. 13 depicts the first illustrative footprint, in which theperforming of task 805 reduces the number of vertices from 14 to 9. Inthe example, vertex 1301 remains after task 805 is performed, whilevertex 1302 can be removed.

FIG. 14 depicts the second example, in which the number of vertices isreduced from 35 to 20 in accordance with task 805. In the example,vertex 1401 remains after task 805 is performed, while vertex 1402 canbe removed.

At task 807, system 201 considers each polyhedron that is verticallystacked with regard to each reference polyhedron, as determined at task705, and removes one or more vertices from a vertically stackedpolyhedron based on how one or more vertices were removed from thepolygon footprint of the reference polyhedron. In some embodiments ofthe present invention, only vertices from polygons belonging tovertically adjacent polyhedrons are removed in this way.

A beneficial effect this step can be to ensure consistency in terms ofhow similar polyhedrons, stacked on top of one another, are handled withrespect to one other. As an example, two polyhedrons are stacked on topof each other in the dataset. For simplicity, the polyhedrons in thisexample have same shape, so that their vertical walls are contiguous. Adifference between the two polyhedrons is that the vertices arespecified in the dataset as clockwise for the first polyhedron andcounterclockwise for the second polyhedron. If vertices reduction wereto be performed independently on each of the two polyhedrons, system 201might remove different vertices in each polyhedron, consequentlycreating an overhang of the upper polyhedron over the bottom one.Although one solution to this might be to ensure that vertices for eachpolygon are always specified clockwise, or always specifiedcounterclockwise, this is not always possible or convenient. Incontrast, performing vertices reduction on one of the polyhedrons, andthen applying it to the other, can result in a consistent treatment ofboth polyhedrons.

FIG. 15 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes of task 607 relatedto performing polygon expansion and overlap checking on the polygonfootprints of each vertices-reduced polyhedron, in accordance with theillustrative embodiment. At task 1501, data-processing system 201expands each polyhedron by expanding its polygon footprint. Inaccordance with the illustrative embodiment, system 201 expands thefootprint by a factor that is based on the predetermined error ofdataset 401. In some embodiments of the present invention, system 201can expand the polygon footprint based on one or more characteristicsother than or in addition to the dataset's predetermined error, such asthe wavelength (e.g., average, highest, lowest, etc.) of anelectromagnetic wave to be modeled as described below and in FIG. 23.

In some embodiments of the present invention, the factor by which thepolygon footprint is expanded, or moved outward as discussed below, doesnot exceed a particular amount, the amount being determined by thepredetermined error of dataset 401 and/or wavelength of theelectromagnetic wave to be modeled. For example, the expansion that isdone is less than the resolution of the dataset being used.

System 201 can expand a polygon footprint in part by moving the verticesbased on the vector sum (e.g., normalized vector sum, non-normalizedvector sum, etc.) of their adjacent edges' outward normals. A differentway of putting this is moving each vertex in the sum direction of theoutward normal of the vertex's adjacent edges. FIG. 16 depicts the firstillustrative footprint 1601, belonging to polyhedron 501-1, in which theperforming of task 1501 results in expanded footprint 1602 as shown.Note that the two edges that are adjacent to the bottom vertex do notvisually appear to move in the direction of their outward normal. Thereason is because the three vertices that are adjacent to these twoedges are the center vertices of three acute angles, which causes theirdirections of movement to be approximately in line with the adjacentedges. FIG. 17 depicts the second example from earlier, in whichfootprint 1701 is expanded to footprint 1702 as shown. The edges in FIG.16 are moved outward by different displacements, while the edges in FIG.17 are moved outward in a relatively uniform way. This is because thevertices and edges of footprint 1701 are approximately equally spacedand distributed around the outline of footprint 1701.

In some alternative embodiments of the present invention, system 201 canexpand a polygon footprint in part by moving at least one edge of thepolygon in the direction of the outward normal of the edge itself, basedon one or more of the factors described above. In some of theseembodiments of the present invention, the amount by which an edge ismoved outward can be inversely proportional to the length of the edge.

In some embodiments of the present invention, system 201 can expand somepolygons, but not others, or can expand different polygons according todifferent factors such as different predetermined errors (e.g., errorresolutions, etc.) that apply to different polygons. In some embodimentsof the present invention, system 201 can expand one or more polyhedronsalong their heights, in addition to or instead of along theirfootprints, such as for certain types of polyhedrons (e.g., non-prism,etc.) or if polyhedrons are to be “stacked” side by side instead of ontop of each other, for example and without limitation.

In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, at least some of thevertices reduction performed in accordance with task 605 is performedprior to the polygon expansion of task 1501. The reason for this is toreduce the number of edges by reducing the number of vertices and, as aresult, thereby reducing the number of edges that need to be movedoutward, and thereby reducing the processing required.

FIG. 18 depicts dataset 1801, which is created as the result of task1501 being performed on all of the polyhedrons within the previousdataset.

At task 1503, system 201 determines whether two or more expanded polygonfootprints obtained in accordance with task 1501 overlap one another,thereby determining which expanded polyhedrons overlap across the x-axisand y-axis (i.e., in two dimensions along the ground). System 201 canmake this determination by polygon clipping an expanded polygonfootprint with the expanded polygon footprints of other, nearbypolyhedrons. System 201 makes this determination in order to form a newpolygon footprint based on overlapping, expanded footprints; the formingof new footprints, as part of polyhedron combining, is performed inaccordance with task 609 discussed below.

FIG. 19 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes of task 609 relatedto performing polyhedron joining on the expanded polyhedrons, inaccordance with the illustrative embodiment. At task 1901,data-processing system 201 selects an initial control polyhedron havinga control footprint. In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, theinitial control polyhedron is selected based on at least one point ofthe polyhedron being characterized as having the lowest start elevation.The start elevation can be measured with respect to mean sea level, alocal mean ground level, or some other reference. The actual point onthe polyhedron whose start elevation is measured can be the lowest pointon the polyhedron, the highest point on the polyhedron, an average ofpoints on the polyhedron, or some other point. FIG. 20 depicts adifferent view of dataset 1801, in which the polyhedron 2001 has beenselected as the initial control polyhedron.

At task 1903, system 201 processes all overlapping polyhedrons withrespect to the current control polyhedron. Task 1903 is described belowand with respect to FIG. 21.

At task 1905, system 201 selects a new control polyhedron based on apoint on it being characterized as having the next lowest startelevation, compared with the previous control polyhedron.

As those who are skilled in the art will appreciate, after reading thisspecification, the technique depicted in FIG. 19 could start withselecting (at task 1901) a control polyhedron based on a point on ithaving the highest, rather than lowest, elevation; then the techniquecould process all overlapping polyhedrons (at task 1903); and then thetechnique could select (at task 1905) a new control polyhedron based ona point on it being characterized as having the next highest, ratherthan next lowest, start elevation, compared with the previous controlpolyhedron.

At task 1907, if there is a new control polyhedron, control of taskexecution proceeds to task 1903. Otherwise, control of task executionproceeds to task 611.

In some alternative embodiments of the present invention,data-processing system 201 can perform the depicted steps instead onnon-expanded polyhedrons, based on determining whether polyhedrons arewithin a predetermined distance of each other (i.e., are “close enough”to each other) rather than determining whether they or their polygonfootprints overlap. The distance can be based on the predetermined errorof the dataset, or based on a wavelength of the electromagnetic wavepropagation to be modeled, or both. The distance can vary from onepolyhedron to another and from one edge to another within the samepolygon footprint of a given polyhedron.

FIG. 21 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes of task 1903related to performing processing for the current control polyhedron, inaccordance with the illustrative embodiment. At task 2101,data-processing system 201 determines whether there is anotherpolyhedron whose polygon footprint overlaps the footprint of the controlpolygon. If so, control of task execution proceeds to task 2103. If not,control of task execution proceeds to task 2111.

At task 2103, system 201 identifies the evaluated polyhedron asoverlapping, adding it to a first non-empty set of polyhedrons whosepolygon footprints overlap the control footprint.

At task 2105, system 201 determines whether the evaluated polyhedron'sheight also overlaps the height of the control polyhedron. If so,control of task execution proceeds to task 2107. If not, control of taskexecution proceeds to task 2101, in order to evaluate the nextpolyhedron with respect to the control polyhedron.

At task 2107, system 201 determines whether a neighbor of theoverlapping polyhedron also overlaps in height with the controlpolyhedron. Neighbor polyhedrons were identified in accordance with task703. If a neighbor also overlaps in height with the control polygon,control of task execution proceeds to task 2109. If not, control of taskexecution proceeds to task 2101, in order to evaluate the nextpolyhedron with respect to the control polyhedron.

At task 2109, system 201 identifies the evaluated neighbor polyhedron asoverlapping, adding the neighbor to a second non-empty set ofpolyhedrons overlapping in height with the control polyhedron.

At task 2111, and when there are no new overlapping neighbor polyhedronsleft to evaluate, system 201 divides each polyhedron in the second setof polyhedrons into a base part and a top part, resulting in a third setof polyhedrons. In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, thedividing is performed such that each base part has the same endelevation as the control polyhedron, and wherein each top part has astart elevation that is that same as the end elevation of the controlpolyhedron, wherein the end elevation of a given polyhedron is higherthan the start elevation of the given polyhedron.

At task 2113, system 201 joins at least a portion of the controlpolyhedron with all of the base parts of the other polyhedrons in thethird set of polyhedrons, resulting in a joined polyhedron. Inaccordance with the illustrative embodiment, parts of polyhedrons at thesame level in elevation are joined together. In some alternativeembodiments of the present invention, parts of polyhedrons at a leveldifferent from that coinciding with the base parts, are joined together.

At task 2115, system 201 adjusts the overlapping polyhedrons' startelevations and end elevations, among the top parts, in preparation forconsidering a next set of polyhedrons (i.e., made up of the former topparts) in the next iteration of task 1903. In other words, the startheights of these new polyhedrons coincide with the end height of thecontrol polyhedron.

At task 2117, system 201 removes any polyhedron from the new set ofpolyhedrons created in task 2115 whose height is less than apredetermined value. In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, thepredetermined height is based on the predetermined error of dataset 1801(e.g., the resolution of the data, accuracy of the vertices relative totheir true positions, etc.). Depending on the predetermined error, apolyhedron can be removed can be removed from the set created in task2115 because whether it is present or not would not make any significantdifference in the modeling performed in accordance with FIG. 23.

At this point, the polyhedrons that were previously determined to beoverlapping are now stacked on top of the single polyhedron that hasbeen formed from the control polyhedron and former base-partpolyhedrons, as depicted in FIG. 22. Polyhedron 2201 was created as theresult of the joining performed in accordance with task 2113, and one ormore polyhedrons 2202 now make up the next set of polyhedrons to beanalyzed for overlap, joining, and removal.

FIG. 23 depicts a flowchart of the salient processes related toperforming the modeling of a dataset that comprises one or more joinedpolyhedrons. The processing depicted in FIG. 23 is performed byapplication engine 104. As those who are skilled in the art willappreciate after reading this specification, however, this processingcan be performed elsewhere or can involve something different thanmodeling as described earlier, or both. For example, data-processingsystem 201 can perform the processing as a separate software process orin a separate hardware component from that which is associated with theenvironment data simplification depicted in FIG. 6 and the relatedfigures.

At task 2301, application engine 104 receives the simplified environmentdata from system 103.

At task 2303, application engine 104 performs modeling in well-knownfashion, but based on simplified dataset 2401 in accordance with theillustrative embodiment; dataset 2401 is depicted in FIG. 24. The datain dataset 2401 for representing an environment is made up of the joinedpolyhedrons provided in accordance with task 609. In the simplifieddataset depicted, there are only three polyhedrons having a total of 47vertices. The three simplified polyhedrons are polyhedrons 2402-1through 2402-3.

The simplified polyhedrons on which application engine 104 performs themodeling can be maintained in their expanded state—that is, thesimplified polyhedrons are not and do not have to be shrunk back toreflect the sizes of their constituent polyhedrons that were representedin dataset 401. Moreover, the set of simplified polyhedrons on whichapplication engine 104 performs the modeling excludes one or morepolyhedrons from one or more of the previous datasets (e.g., raw dataset401, intermediate dataset 1801, etc.) from which the polyhedrons indataset 2401 were formed. Because of these considerations, modeling thedata requires fewer computations, resulting in shorter computation time,and such an improvement in the functioning of the data-processing systemthat performs the modeling can be achieved without sacrificing thequality of the resulting image.

In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, the modeling performedat task 2303 supports electromagnetic wave propagation modeling. Thiscan include generating wave propagation characteristic based on thesimplified dataset. In particular, task 2303 can include determining(e.g., computing, calculating, etc.) a line-of-sight, or other type ofvisibility, between two points in space—that is, evaluating whether oneof the points can be seen from the other at the electromagneticwavelength under consideration in the modeling. Task 2303 can alsoinclude generating results with regard to one or more propagationcharacteristics such as propagation delay between two points, powerlevel received at one point from another, angle of arrival, and delayspread, for example and without limitation.

As those who are skilled in the art will appreciate after reading thisspecification, however, the processing performed at task 2303 can bedifferent than propagation modeling, as described earlier. For exampleand without limitation, instead of modeling electromagnetic wavepropagation based on a simplified dataset 2401, application engine can:

-   -   i. perform a visualization on dataset 2401,    -   ii. calculate a navigation step based on dataset 2401, or    -   iii. perform a different type of computation based on dataset        2401.

At task 2305, application engine 104 presents to a user the results ofthe processing at task 2303, such as by transmitting a signal to amonitor for display of the results.

FIG. 25 depicts geographic region 2501, in which the structures that arepresent in the geographic region can be represented in a simplifieddataset, in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the presentinvention. As already discussed, a benefit of simplifying the data forrepresenting an environment is faster visibility computations, both interms of point-to-point visibility and aggregate visibility. Regardingpoint-to-point visibility computations, the decrease in computation timeis largely due to the decrease in the number of objects that need to beconsidered such as walls, which are related to the polyhedrons in thedataset. In order to demonstrate this, five target locations werearbitrarily selected, depicted as target locations 2502-1 through2502-5; then, the time it took to determine whether these points werevisible to a given source location, depicted as source location 2503,was recorded.

The visibility test was performed both using an original dataset with nodataset simplification and using a dataset on which simplification wasperformed according to the techniques disclosed herein. Also, thevisibility test was done with a basic ray-casting algorithm, whichtested whether each of the objects in the geographic region intersectthe direct lines, depicted as lines 2504-1 through 2504-4, from thesource location to the target locations. Overall, the computation timedecreased significantly when using the simplified dataset compared tothe original dataset, by around 37% in some embodiments of the presentinvention.

It is to be understood that the disclosure teaches just one example ofthe illustrative embodiment and that many variations of the inventioncan easily be devised by those skilled in the art after reading thisdisclosure and that the scope of the present invention is to bedetermined by the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for simplifying the representation ofstructures in data for representing an environment, the methodcomprising: receiving, by a data-processing system, a first dataset thatis representative of one or more structures defined by a plurality ofpolyhedrons, including a control polyhedron having a control footprint,wherein each polyhedron in the plurality has a polygon footprint and oneor more neighbor polyhedrons, and wherein the first dataset ischaracterized as having a predetermined error; determining, by thedata-processing system, that a first polyhedron, in a first non-emptyset of polyhedrons whose polygon footprints overlap the controlfootprint, also overlaps in height with the control polyhedron;determining, by the data-processing system, that a second polyhedrondefined as a neighbor polyhedron of the first polyhedron, with a polygonfootprint that overlaps the footprint of the first polyhedron, alsooverlaps in height with the control polyhedron, resulting in a secondnon-empty set of polyhedrons that overlap in height with the controlpolyhedron, including the first polyhedron and the second polyhedron;dividing, by the data-processing system, each polyhedron in the secondset of polyhedrons into a base part and a top part, resulting in a thirdset of polyhedrons; joining, by the data-processing system, at least aportion of the control polyhedron with all of the base parts of thepolyhedrons in the third set of polyhedrons, resulting in a first joinedpolyhedron; removing a top part from at least one of the polyhedrons inthe third set of polyhedrons, based on the height of the top partfailing to exceed a value that is based on the predetermined error;transmitting, by the data-processing system to an application engine, asecond dataset that comprises i) the first joined polyhedron and ii) apolyhedron defined by a top part of at least one of the polyhedrons inthe third set of polyhedrons, but excludes iii) the removed top part;calculating, by the application engine, visibility between two points inthe second dataset; and presenting, to a user, a result that is based onthe visibility calculated.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein at least onepoint of the control polyhedron is characterized as having the loweststart elevation in the plurality of polyhedrons.
 3. The method of claim1 further comprising identifying the one or more neighbor polyhedrons bydetermining, for each polyhedron in the plurality, which polyhedrons arewithin a given distance.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein thecalculating of visibility is part of at least one of modeling,visualization, and navigation.
 5. The method of claim 1 wherein thepredetermined error is characterized as a particular resolution at whichthe first dataset is made available.
 6. The method of claim 1 whereinthe dividing is performed such that each base part has the same endelevation as the control polyhedron, and wherein each top part has astart elevation that is the same as the end elevation of the controlpolyhedron, the end elevation of a given polyhedron being higher thanthe start elevation of the given polyhedron.
 7. The method of claim 1further comprising determining, by the data-processing system, that aneighbor polyhedron of the second polyhedron, with a polygon footprintthat overlaps the footprint of the second polyhedron, also overlaps inheight with the control polyhedron, wherein the second non-empty set ofpolyhedrons further includes the neighbor polyhedron of the secondpolyhedron.
 8. The method of claim 7 wherein the first polyhedron andthe neighbor polyhedron of the second polyhedron are non-overlapping intheir polygon footprints.
 9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:selecting, by the data-processing system, a new control polyhedronhaving a new control footprint, in a fourth set of polyhedrons thatcomprises all of the top parts of the polyhedrons in the third set ofpolyhedrons; determining, by the data-processing system, that a thirdpolyhedron, in a fourth non-empty set of polyhedrons whose polygonfootprints overlap the new control footprint, also overlaps in heightwith the new control polyhedron; determining, by the data-processingsystem, that a fourth polyhedron also overlaps in height with the newcontrol polyhedron, resulting in a fifth non-empty set of polyhedronsthat overlap in height with the new control polyhedron, including thethird polyhedron and the fourth polyhedron; dividing, by thedata-processing system, each polyhedron in the fifth set of polyhedronsinto a base part and a top part, resulting in a sixth set ofpolyhedrons; joining, by the data-processing system, at least a portionof the new control polyhedron with all of the base parts of thepolyhedrons in the sixth set of polyhedrons, resulting in a secondjoined polyhedron; wherein the second dataset further comprises thesecond joined polyhedron.
 10. A method for simplifying therepresentation of structures in data for representing an environment,the method comprising: receiving, by a data-processing system, a firstdataset that is representative of one or more structures defined by aplurality of polyhedrons, including a control polyhedron having acontrol footprint, wherein each polyhedron in the plurality has apolygon footprint and one or more neighbor polyhedrons, and wherein thefirst dataset is characterized as having a predetermined error;determining, by the data-processing system, that a first polyhedron, ina first non-empty set of polyhedrons whose polygon footprints overlapthe control footprint, also overlaps in height with the controlpolyhedron; determining, by the data-processing system, that a secondpolyhedron also overlaps in height with the control polyhedron,resulting in a second non-empty set of polyhedrons that overlap inheight with the control polyhedron, including the first polyhedron andthe second polyhedron; dividing, by the data-processing system, eachpolyhedron in the second set of polyhedrons into a base part and a toppart, resulting in a third set of polyhedrons; joining, by thedata-processing system, at least a portion of the control polyhedronwith all of the base parts of the polyhedrons in the third set ofpolyhedrons, resulting in a first joined polyhedron; removing a top partfrom at least one of the polyhedrons in the third set of polyhedrons,based on the height of the top part failing to exceed a value that isbased on the predetermined error; transmitting, by the data-processingsystem to an application engine, a second dataset that comprises i) thefirst joined polyhedron and ii) a polyhedron defined by a top part of atleast one of the polyhedrons in the third set of polyhedrons, butexcludes iii) the removed top part; calculating, by the applicationengine, visibility between two points in the second dataset; andpresenting, to a user, a result that is based on the visibilitycalculated.
 11. The method of claim 10 wherein at least one point of thecontrol polyhedron is characterized as having the lowest start elevationin the plurality of polyhedrons.
 12. The method of claim 10 wherein thedividing is performed such that each base part has the same endelevation as the control polyhedron, and wherein each top part has astart elevation that is the same as the end elevation of the controlpolyhedron, the end elevation of a given polyhedron being higher thanthe start elevation of the given polyhedron.
 13. The method of claim 10further comprising determining, by the data-processing system, that aneighbor polyhedron of the second polyhedron, with a polygon footprintthat overlaps the footprint of the second polyhedron, also overlaps inheight with the control polyhedron, wherein the second non-empty set ofpolyhedrons further includes the neighbor polyhedron of the secondpolyhedron.
 14. The method of claim 13 wherein the first polyhedron andthe neighbor polyhedron of the second polyhedron are non-overlapping intheir polygon footprints.
 15. The method of claim 10 further comprising:selecting, by the data-processing system, a new control polyhedronhaving a new control footprint, in a fourth set of polyhedrons thatcomprises all of the top parts of the polyhedrons in the third set ofpolyhedrons; determining, by the data-processing system, that a thirdpolyhedron, in a fourth non-empty set of polyhedrons whose polygonfootprints overlap the new control footprint, also overlaps in heightwith the new control polyhedron; determining, by the data-processingsystem, that a fourth polyhedron also overlaps in height with the newcontrol polyhedron, resulting in a fifth non-empty set of polyhedronsthat overlap in height with the new control polyhedron, including thethird polyhedron and the fourth polyhedron; dividing, by thedata-processing system, each polyhedron in the fifth set of polyhedronsinto a base part and a top part, resulting in a sixth set ofpolyhedrons; joining, by the data-processing system, at least a portionof the new control polyhedron with all of the base parts of thepolyhedrons in the sixth set of polyhedrons, resulting in a secondjoined polyhedron; wherein the second dataset further comprises thesecond joined polyhedron.
 16. A method for simplifying therepresentation of structures in data for representing an environment,the method comprising: receiving, by a data-processing system, a firstdataset that is representative of one or more structures defined by aplurality of polyhedrons, including a control polyhedron having acontrol footprint, wherein each polyhedron in the plurality has apolygon footprint and one or more neighbor polyhedrons, wherein at leastone point of the control polyhedron is characterized as having thelowest start elevation in the plurality of polyhedrons, and wherein thefirst dataset is characterized as having a predetermined error;determining, by the data-processing system, that a first polyhedron, ina first non-empty set of polyhedrons whose polygon footprints overlapthe control footprint, also overlaps in height with the controlpolyhedron; determining, by the data-processing system, that a secondpolyhedron also overlaps in height with the control polyhedron,resulting in a second non-empty set of polyhedrons that overlap inheight with the control polyhedron, including the first polyhedron andthe second polyhedron; dividing, by the data-processing system, eachpolyhedron in the second set of polyhedrons into a base part and a toppart, such that each base part has the same end elevation as the controlpolyhedron, and wherein each top part has a start elevation that is thesame as the end elevation of the control polyhedron, the end elevationof a given polyhedron being higher than the start elevation of the givenpolyhedron, wherein the dividing results in a third set of polyhedrons;joining, by the data-processing system, at least a portion of thecontrol polyhedron with all of the base parts of the polyhedrons in thethird set of polyhedrons, resulting in a joined polyhedron; removing atop part from at least one of the polyhedrons in the third set ofpolyhedrons, based on the height of the top part failing to exceed avalue that is based on the predetermined error; transmitting, by thedata-processing system to an application engine, a second dataset thatcomprises i) the joined polyhedron and ii) a polyhedron defined by a toppart of at least one of the polyhedrons in the third set of polyhedrons,but excludes iii) the removed top part; calculating, by the applicationengine, visibility between two points in the second dataset; andpresenting, to a user, a result that is based on the visibilitycalculated.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein the calculating ofvisibility is part of at least one of modeling, visualization, andnavigation.
 18. The method of claim 16 wherein the predetermined erroris characterized as a particular resolution at which the first datasetis made available.
 19. The method of claim 16 further comprisingdetermining, by the data-processing system, that a neighbor polyhedronof the second polyhedron, with a polygon footprint that overlaps thefootprint of the second polyhedron, also overlaps in height with thecontrol polyhedron, wherein the second non-empty set of polyhedronsfurther includes the neighbor polyhedron of the second polyhedron. 20.The method of claim 19 wherein the first polyhedron and the neighborpolyhedron of the polyhedron are non-overlapping in their polygonfootprints.